INDIAN LAND – About two years ago, while Bob Paulson was on vacation, he began reading a book that would soon change his life.

Paulson, an Indian Land resident and editor of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association’s Decision magazine, was reading a book called “Terrify No More” about the issue of human trafficking.

The book detailed the efforts of the International Justice Mission, a human rights agency that deals with slavery and oppression around the world, and was written by that organization’s president Gary A. Haugen.

A 12-year-old boy told Lancaster police he was shot at Wednesday afternoon while walking home on Miller Street.

The boy said he and two other boys were walking between Sycamore Run Apartments and Miller Grove Apartments about 7:20 p.m. when gunshots were fired from a burgundy Ford Crown Victoria, according to a Lancaster Police Department incident report.

The shots came from a back-seat passenger, who appeared to be aiming at the Miller Grove Apartments office building, the boy told police.

As Lancaster County Administrator, Steve Willis is often swamped with more duties than he can handle during a normal work week. Sometimes, he works seven straight days without a break.

That’s why he asked for some help.

“(County) Council had been talking about adding a deputy administrator for quite some time,” Willis said. “From a personal standpoint, my wife would tell me she would like to see me at home on the weekends and after church. Just the amount of paperwork, trying to stay in control, that’s the biggest thing for me.”

VAN WYCK – When Rosemary Fann lost her husband, Randy, in early 2007, little did she know that two years later she’d lose her home as well.

Fann, 61, used to live in a trailer off Van Wyck Road in Van Wyck. Set back from the road and nestled beneath several trees, the Fanns lived there for nine years.

The property holds several memories for her, from the bountiful garden full of cucumbers and pumpkins that grew in her backyard, to the ramp her husband built for her after health concerns made it difficult for her to climb the stairs.

RICHBURG – Chester County drug agents arrested a Charlotte man over the weekend who they say was carrying a significant amount of marijuana.

Luis Roberto-Bororquez Ventura, 29, of 6616 Rollingridge Road, Charlotte, was arrested around 3 a.m. Sunday morning in the parking lot of the Waffle House in Richburg.

The Chester County drug team was working with the State Law Enforcement Division and had received a tip from the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office that Ventura would be in the area and possibly holding an illegal substance.

Local historian Lindsay Pettus remembers his reaction when he was called with the news that the historic Lancaster County Courthouse was on fire.

“I cried,” Pettus said on Friday. “It was just devastating. When I rode down here and saw the immensity of it and saw the flames shooting out of the roof, it really struck home. The most historic building in Lancaster County was on fire.”

Firefighters and law enforcement officers responded to the fire about 5:15 a.m. Aug. 4, 2008.

Paying traffic tickets just became a little easier in Lancaster County.

A new online payment system became available in June for motorists who have been issued traffic tickets within the 6th Judicial Circuit, which includes Lancaster County. The system, which can be accessed at http://publicindex.sccourts.org/lancaster/onlinepayments/, allows motorists to type in their last name and case number to access their information and pay their fine.